광산 이씨(光山 李氏) — An Yi (Lee) seat based in old Gwangsan, today's Gwangju Metropolitan City, known for Yi Seon-je of the Hall of Worthies and the brothers Yi Bal and Yi Gil of the 1589 purge. It is separate from the Gwangju (廣州, Gyeonggi) Yi clan.
An Yi (Lee) seat based in old Gwangsan, today's Gwangju Metropolitan City, known for Yi Seon-je of the Hall of Worthies and the brothers Yi Bal and Yi Gil of the 1589 purge. It is separate from the Gwangju (廣州, Gyeonggi) Yi clan. In the 2015 Census the 광산 이씨 clan numbered about 40,177 people, one of Korea's major surnames and clans. Even among people surnamed 이, a different clan seat (bon-gwan, 광산) means a different lineage. New to these terms? See the bon-gwan, pa & hangnyeol guide.
The Gwangsan Yi clan (光山 李氏) takes its seat from Gwangsan, the old name of today's Gwangju Metropolitan City. Wikipedia notes it is also called the Gwangju (光州) Yi and that "Gwangsan" is an alternative name for Gwangju. Seats of residence are listed in Hwasun, Gangjin, Naju and Jindo in South Jeolla, in Gwangju, in Goryeong and Seongju in North Gyeongsang and in Goesan, North Chungcheong. The population was 36,741 in the 2000 census as cited by Wikipedia and 40,177 in the 2015 census.
Please do not confuse it with similarly named seats. This page covers the clan of old Gwangsan (Gwangju Metropolitan City). The Gwangju Yi clan of Gwangju in Gyeonggi Province (廣州) has a different founder and lineage, and the Gwangsan Kim clan, though sharing the Gwangsan seat, has different roots.
The Byeongjin Grand Genealogy, published in 1856 at Jeungsimsa in Gwangju, named Yi Jeong (李靖), a provincial recommended jinsa, as founder. The three brothers Yi Sun-baek, Yi Suk-baek and Yi Seung-baek, prominent in late Goryeo, are described as founders of the Sangseo-gong, Hallim-gong and Jehak-gong branches. Wikipedia calls Yi Sun-baek both a 7th-generation and an 8th-generation descendant of Yi Jeong, so generation counts differ between texts. Other views on the founder are also mentioned, but they could not be confirmed here; please check with the clan association.
The Sangseo-gong branch, counting Yi Sun-baek as generation one, is what made the clan widely known. Fifth-generation Yi Seon-je served in the Hall of Worthies under King Sejong, and many sub-branches grew from his five sons. Wikipedia says Yi Jo-won, Yi Jung-ho, Yi Bal and Yi Gil are grouped with him as the clan's "Five Worthies."
In the Jeong Yeo-rip affair of 1589, many letters from Yi Bal, leader of the Easterners, were found at Jeong's house; Yi Bal, his brother Yi Gil, and Yi Bal's aged mother and young son all died. The incident reportedly killed or exiled about a thousand people, and Wikipedia says it greatly weakened the clan. Families in Jindo are said to have settled there to escape this disaster.
Sangseo-gong-pa, Hallim-gong-pa, Jehak-gong-pa, Gangjin-pa, Jindo Dongoe-pa, Jindo Namoe-pa, Yeongnam-pa
The Sangseo-gong branch takes Yi Sun-baek (李珣白) as its first-generation ancestor. When the retired king was exiled to Tibet in 1320 after being slandered by a Yuan eunuch, Yi alone accompanied him, and he is said to have helped win his release in 1322, rising to Hallim Scholar and Left Vice Minister (Sangseo Jwabokya), enfeoffed as Prince Gwangsan with the title Chungjang.
In the generation of the five sons of fifth-generation Yi Seon-je it split into the Iksan, Naknan, Gwangju, Yeonggwang, Neungju, Gangjin, Suncheon, Hwasun, Naju and Jindo Dongoe sub-branches, among others. It is the line that made the clan well known, and the brothers Yi Bal and Yi Gil came from it.
The Hallim-gong branch descends from Yi Suk-baek (李淑白), younger brother of Yi Sun-baek. According to Wikipedia, his son Yi Sun passed the civil examination in 1374 and served as Heonnap and Pungihae provincial inspector; Yi Sun's eldest son Yi Cho became Daesaseong after Joseon's founding and his second son Yi Mae served as a teacher in Yeonggwang and later as a Champ'an.
Yi Geun-saeng, second son of Yi Rim (a Hoeryeong magistrate), is said to have retired to Gogok-dong in Seongsan, Goryeong, lamenting the deposition of King Danjong, and became the founder of the Yeongnam line. The branch is said to continue as the Jangseong, Bongyeon, Yeongnam, Chilgok, Seongju, Dansadong and Hapcheon lines.
The Jehak-gong branch descends from Yi Seung-baek (李升白), younger brother of Yi Sun-baek. Wikipedia says only that it continues as the Gaeseong line, so the founder's career and detailed lineage could not be confirmed here.
The 1856 Byeongjin Grand Genealogy lists the descendants of all three: Sangseo-gong Sun-baek, Hallim-gong Suk-baek and Jehak-gong Seung-baek. Please check your own line in the genealogy.
The Gangjin line formed when eighth-generation Yi Hui (李憙) of the Sangseo-gong branch settled in Gangjin, South Jeolla. He is said to have been born under King Seongjong, passed the civil examination under Jungjong, held several posts and reached Daesagan, and is honored at Suam Seowon in Suyang-ri, Seongjeon, Gangjin.
Wikipedia relays the account that, because a daughter of his grandfather Yi Jo-won was grandmother of Go Gyeong-myeong, the Gangjin line suffered less in 1589 than other Sangseo-gong lines. This rests on one account, so treat it as a reference only.
The Jindo Dongoe line descends from Yi Won-seop (李元燮), who came to Jindo to escape the 1589 purge. He is the son of Yi Gil and is said to have settled at Wonpo in Gogun-myeon, Jindo, together with Yi Geun, son of Yi Yun, a sixth cousin of Yi Bal.
They later spread to Georyong in Uisin-myeon and Dongoe-ri in the town, and some moved on to Jodo-myeon. In 2002 Gyeongmosa, enshrining 500 tablets of the clan, was built in Namsan-ri, Jindo-eup.
The Jindo Namoe line began when Yi Won-jun (李元濬), another sixth cousin of Yi Bal, settled at Jung-ri in Uisin-myeon, Jindo. His descendants are said to have spread to Jukrim in Imhoe-myeon, Namdong in the town, Samdang-ri and Sacheon-ri in Jisan-myeon, Paengmok-ri in Imhoe-myeon and Okdae in Uisin-myeon.
Wikipedia calls this family the Namoe line and explains the many Gwangsan Yi in Jindo by flight from the 1589 purge.
The Yeongnam line descends from Yi Geun-saeng (李根生) of the Hallim-gong branch. By Wikipedia, he was the second son of Yi Rim, a Hoeryeong magistrate, and retired to Gogok-dong in Seongsan, Goryeong, North Gyeongsang, to study after Danjong's deposition and Prince Suyang's accession.
His descendants settled in Yeongnam and became known as the Yeongnam line; Goryeong, Seongju and Gimcheon in North Gyeongsang and Dalseong in Daegu are listed as the clan's Yeongnam seats.
Branch divisions vary by lineage and jokbo; confirm your own branch in your family's records.
이순백(first-generation ancestor of the Sangseo-gong branch), 이선제(scholar of the Hall of Worthies), 이조원(upright scholar, honest official), 이달선(royal secretary), 이중호(Jehak), 이발(leader of the Easterners), 이길(Eungyo), 이서(disciple of Jeong Gu), 이희(settler of the Gangjin line), 이기남(turtle-ship assault commander), 이병완(chief of staff to President Roh Moo-hyun)
Tap a name for the full profile (life, career, grave, descendants).
The clan divides into three main branches: Sangseo-gong (Yi Sun-baek), Hallim-gong (Yi Suk-baek) and Jehak-gong (Yi Seung-baek). Sangseo-gong splits through the five sons ("Five Won") of fifth-generation Yi Seon-je: Siwon (Yangsimdang), Chanwon (Jehak-gong), Jowon (Cheongsimdang), Hanwon (Sesimdang) and Hyeongwon (Seongsimdang). By Wikipedia's summary, Siwon's descendants form the Iksan, Naknan and Gwangju lines; Chanwon's the Yeonggwang line; Jowon's the Neungju, Bonghwangsan, Gangjin, Suncheon and Hwasun lines; Hanwon's the Sesimdang line; and Hyeongwon's the Jukcheong, Naju, Jincheon-Dongbok, Jindo Dongoe, Jindo Pyedong and Ilgok lines. Hallim-gong continues as the Jangseong, Bongyeon, Yeongnam, Chilgok, Seongju, Dansadong and Hapcheon lines, and Jehak-gong as the Gaeseong line. Branch names differ between sources, so please check your own line in your genealogy.
Six genealogies are counted: Imo (1762, Gaecheonsa in Neungju, Hwasun), Jeonghae (1827), Byeongjin (1856, Jeungsimsa in Gwangju), Sinsa (1881), Imja (1912) and Imjin (compiled 2012-2013). The Byeongjin Grand Genealogy is described as the only one to include descendants of all three branches, and it is where Yi Jeong was fixed as founder. The Sinsa edition is said to have introduced generation-name characters for the first time.
Wikipedia lists main seats in Goesan (North Chungcheong); Hwasun (Jukcheong-ri in Dogok, Cheontae-ri and Deunggwang-ri in Doam, Doseok-ri in Iseo) and Wanggok in Naju, Suyang-ri in Seongjeon (Gangjin) and Sinan in South Jeolla; Seongsan in Goryeong, Seonnam in Seongju and Bongsan in Gimcheon in North Gyeongsang; Nongong in Dalseong, Daegu; Gwangsan-gu and Buk-gu in Gwangju; and Bupyeong in Incheon.
The Gangjin line is said to have been established when eighth-generation Yi Hui settled there, and he is honored at Suam Seowon in Suyang-ri. The story that the Gangjin branch suffered less in 1589 because a daughter of Yi Jo-won was grandmother of Go Gyeong-myeong rests on one account, so treat it with care. In Jindo, people who fled the purge, such as Yi Geun, Yi Won-seop and Yi Won-jun, are said to have settled and formed the Dongoe and Namoe lines; in 2002 Gyeongmosa, enshrining 500 tablets of the clan, was built in Namsan-ri, Jindo-eup. At Aengnam-ri in Hwasun stand the tomb and stele of Yi Dal-seon.
The buncheong inlaid epitaph of Yi Seon-je, dated to the 5th year of Jingtai (1454), was smuggled to Japan in 1998 and returned in 2017 through a donation by a Japanese collector; it was designated a Treasure on 27 June 2018. It is valued for revealing his family and career, which were poorly recorded after the 1589 purge. It is described as held at Gwangju National Museum, though one report says it was donated to the National Museum of Korea, so sources differ.
Yi Bal, leader of the Easterners, and his younger brother Yi Gil died under torture in the 1589 purge and were later rehabilitated (dates differ by source). In scholarship, Yi Seo studied under Jeong Gu and built Hoeyeon Seowon in Seongju. In the Imjin War, Yi Gi-nam is said to have fought under Yi Sun-sin as a turtle-ship assault commander. In modern times Yi Byeong-wan served as chief of staff to President Roh Moo-hyun.
Wikipedia names the Naknan Yi among seats that split from the Gwangsan Yi, and lists as neighboring seats the Gwangsan Kim, Gwangsan Tak, Gwangju No, Geumseong Na, Geumseong Beom, Nampyeong Mun, Suncheon Kim and Bannam Bak. As for ties with the Joseon royal house, it notes that the wife of Prince Changseon, grandson of Taejo's half-brother Prince Uian, was a Jeongyeong Buin from the Naknan Yi. With so many seemingly similar seat names, please confirm which Gwangsan or Gwangju line your family belongs to by the founder and the hanja of the seat in your genealogy.
Wikipedia links an official website and an official online cafe, but their addresses and contacts could not be confirmed here. The generation-name table could not be confirmed either (only that it was first introduced in the Sinsa edition), so please ask the clan association.
This is a seat with limited material, so this page sums up only what Wikipedia and the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture confirm. Please tell us of any errors or additions.
The 광산 이씨 clan association can be found in the Korean E-Jokbo Library clan-association directory.
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